WildCat
III is the NSRL's
data entry application for use in-house and in the field. As a
part of the NSRL's relational database management system (written
in Microsoft Visual FoxPro®), WildCat
III reduces data
transcription and errors commonly associated with a hand-written
data management system. WildCat
III allows data to
be entered directly into the computer during the first stages of
the data gathering process. The NSRL is currently testing the use
of computers (and WildCat
III) in the field
as Texas Tech's mammalogists gather specimens and data to provide
valuable information about our natural surroundings.
The NSRL's Mammal Collection Data Standards Guide is used to assist data entry using
WildCat III. The standards outlined in the NSRL's guide are based
on Documentation
Standards for Automatic Data Processing in Mammalogy, version 2.0, American Society of
Mammalogists, 1996. Permission has been granted for this use. The
standards for most of the NSRL's data fields have been taken
verbatim from the ASM's Documentation Standards. A fewchanges
have been made to some fields to allow for the particular quirks
of the database management system (WildCat) used in the mammal
collection at Texas Tech University. We do not propose to replace
the ASM's standards in any way and encourage other collections to
follow them as closely as possible.
NSRL's Mammal Collection Data Standards Guide
The American Society of Mammalogists
The Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections